Midseason NFL draft preview

Notre Dame tight end Tyler Eifert (80) makes a move to get around Florida State linebacker Nigel Bradham (13) after a reception in the first half of the Champs Sports Bowl NCAA college football game, Thursday, Dec. 29, 2011, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
— AP

Notre Dame tight end Tyler Eifert (80) makes a move to get around Florida State linebacker Nigel Bradham (13) after a reception in the first half of the Champs Sports Bowl NCAA college football game, Thursday, Dec. 29, 2011, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
/ AP

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Mel Kiper Jr.
43% (18)

Todd McShay
17% (7)

Mike Mayock
40% (17)

42 total votes.

ESPN NFL draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. has released his midseason preview.

Currently he has four teams needing a quarterback, five teams needing a running back, 19 teams with a wide receiver need and seven teams in need of tight end help. Obviously, most teams need help at multiple positions.

There was no particular order in Kiper's preview. It was an exercise meant to give you an idea where teams are leaning, considering we're essentially at the halfway point of the NFL season.

Kiper notes: "Personnel folks for NFL teams are quite aware of where the biggest voids on the roster exist. They've seen plenty of reps against good and bad competition, and injuries have allowed them to go deeper into the roster for help. So while the scouting process is a perpetual one, at this point you can start to get a better sense of what you'll need to look at in the offseason."

He adds: "The draft portion of this is mostly for fun -- all juniors mentioned here aren't even guaranteed of being in the draft -- but we'll put a name in for each team just to get you more familiar with some of the top prospects in my rankings. The draft board is a long, long way from complete -- just like mine. But here's to getting way ahead of ourselves …"

For fantasy purposes, I will stick with the teams who Kiper believe are most likely to draft players on the offensive side of the ball in the first round.

Chargers (Needs: CB, WR, TE): Kiper has them taking Notre Dame tight end Tyler Eifert, who's currently the No. 1 rated prospect at the position according to cbssports.com. Eifert has a good size -- 6-5, 252 lbs -- and speed combo. He's the only tight end on the 2012 Maxwell Award Watch List, presented to college football's Player of the Year. In a lot of ways, he's just an abnormally big wide receiver. He'd be able to step in and contribute right away with the Chargers, even with a productive Antonio Gates on the roster. He'd also serve as Gates' successor. Personally, I believe they need serious help on the offensive line, but Eifert couldn't hurt since Gates isn't getting doubled on a regular basis anymore.

Bills (WR, QB, DL): When the most consistent part of your passing game is screen passes to your running backs, you know you need help on the outside. I like Steve Johnson, but he needs someone across from him that strikes fear in an opposing defense. Kiper offers up Baylor wide receiver Terrance Williams. To put his season in perspective, he's averaging 168 yards per game, which means he's on pace for 2,010 receiving yards through the regular season. If Baylor becomes bowl eligible, he'll likely break the all-time record for receiving yards in a season set by Trevor Insley of Nevada (2,060 yards receiving in 1999). Williams has also only been held under 100 receiving yards in a game once -- he had 84 at Louisiana-Monroe -- and has failed to score a touchdown in only two of Baylor’s eight games this year. Kendall Wright having success right away in Tennessee shows the Bears are doing something right with their receivers.